Airport Holiday Display

To close our 100th Anniversary of Girl Scouting celebrations, Girl Scouts of Central California South partnered with the Fresno Yosemite International Airport for their 2012 holiday display of trees. Displays featured recycled materials based on the Girl Scouts Forever Green campaign, a national effort of girls leading their families, schools, and communities in improving the environment and protecting natural resources. The holiday display of trees were exhibited for the entire month of December 2012 at the airport. Local artists created beautiful designs for the holiday trees, based on the Forever Green, a eco-friendly theme. We even had a team of talented Girl Scouts design a tree as part of Together Greening, a international partnership between Girl Scouts in the USA and Girl Guides, sponsored by Alcoa Foundation.

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More than 200 Girl Scouts and their families attended the tree lighting ceremony and Holiday Sing-Along on November 30, 2012 sponsored by Alcoa. The girls took part in a scavenger hunt to learn more about the tree display and recycling, and earned a special patch. Major sponsors and funders of Girl Scouts of Central California South were recognized by having trees named after them.

Meet our Designers!

Global Green Team

Girl Scouts of Central California South “Global Green Team” is made up of Treasa, Lillian, Allison, and Alyssa.

Tree Name: Renewing Friendship

Design Concept: Girl Scouts and Girl Guides are all around the world. We wanted to showcase the friendship we all share because we belong to Girl Scouts. Our tree represented the different girls from around the world who share in our same beliefs about building girls of courage, character and confidence that makes the world a better place.

Sandy Kane

Though born in Berkeley California, I was raised in Kansas City. Our family was transferred to Fresno twenty-eight years ago. I love Fresno for its weather, outdoor fun and people. It may get hot for a few weeks in late summer but the rest of the year it is mild and very pleasant. I am married with four grown children scattered from the east coast to the west coast, nine grandchildren and one great grand daughter. I’m retired now after being a florist for thirty-seven years. My degree is in Political Science from Fresno State but I have always loved the creativity involved with flower arranging. My retirement gave me the opportunity to stretch beyond flowers and into art. I began with mosaics and became captivated by found object art and furniture restoration. Now I do everything; sculpture, mosaic work, painting, and restoring old furniture. Retirement also provided me time to pursue downhill skiing and kayaking. I am happy for the opportunity to do a Christmas Tree and bring to that some of the styles and techniques I have learned over the years.

Name of Tree: YET AGAIN

Design Concept: My tree is all about “found object art” and recycling. The name of the tree is “YET AGAIN”…a reference to all of the ornaments and decorations used being something old that I am recycling, some often intended for another use entirely. It includes old jewelry, metal objects like drawer pulls and knobs and old keys, throw away things like cardboard and plastic, corks and kitchen tools. I like the idea of creating something new from something old.

Fresno City College Fashion Merchandising Class

Pamela Hutton’s Intro to Fashion Merchandising class at Fresno City College is proud to support the Girl Scouts of America through the creation of “eco-fashion dolls” on the 2012 Christmas Tree. Representing a variety of cultural heritages, the class is comprised of young women and men who want to make a difference in the world through fashion, design, retailing, and environmental sustainability.

Name of Tree: An Eco-Christmas in Full Fashion

Design Concept: Fashioned from recycled, reused and redesigned materials, an eco-Christmas tree comes to life with student representations of runway fashion dolls. From recycled newspaper to reused packaging materials to redesigned old clothing, the beauty of sustainability emerges to brighten the Season…and our future.

Deanne Lewis Hale

I’m Deanne Lewis Hale. My husband Tony and I have 3 children. As a family we have enjoyed decorating for a variety of community events such as Christmas Tree Lane, Christmas at the Met, & Christmas at the Airport. I have spent the last 15 years in retail as a Visual Merchandising Manager.

I currently work for the Department of Defense and take great pride in providing retail resources for our military member, retirees, and their families.

Name of Tree: Our GREEN Military

Design Concept: The tree will feature a strong Red, White and Blue color pallet, some ornaments will be reused from previous exhibits. There will be larger ornaments with pictures and text talking about the many green concepts that the military has in place on bases world wide. Some examples would be that the recycling center on board NAS Lemoore recycled 1,600 tons last year which equates to a savings of $61,000 in fees that would have been paid in trips to the dump. Net profits from the recycling are used to fund energy conservation projects.

Michael J. Ray

A native Fresnan who studied at Fresno State, Michael J. Ray has been doing some kind of art project all his life. His day job as a Visual Display Manager at Gottschalks came to an end when the company closed. Confronted with some unexpected free time, he has begun to pursue some art projects that long has evaded him. Michael’s work ranges widely from canvas and murals, graphic design, interiors, installation, and even airbrush tattoos. As Michael often says, “If it’s creative, I can do it.”

Name of Tree: PVC Tree

Design Concept: The idea of using discarded PVC pipe has an almost two-fold existence. Not only is the PVC pipe being used again, but the idea that it was used to maybe transport water to regenerate something else, makes it even more attractive as a true re-use medium. After Christmas, maybe the PVC pipe gets re-used again…. say maybe a water fountain?

Adam Mena

I was born and raised in Fresno CA. I graduated from San Joaquin Memorial High School in 2005 and graduated with a BA in Furniture and Woodwork design at San Diego State University in Dec. 2009. I am currently a Graduate Student at Fresno State working on a Masters Degree in Sculpture. My passion for Art started in high school and has been a part of my life throughout the years. I am currently employed at Arte Americas as the preparator and assistant curator. I am one of the founders of the Art House gallery/studios. I was one of the participating designers for the Fresno Art Museums Trashique Fashion Show and I have also shown work in many galleries including Chris Sorensons, Broadway Studios, Arte Americas, and the Art House.

Name of Tree “Picture This”

Design Concept: I wanted to design and construct a Christmas tree made of old picture frames to play with idea of the purpose of the frame itself. Many people during the holiday season often take family portraits and frame them to show the importance of love for their family or friends. These pictures will then be passed on to future generations with or with out the frame. The frame is often not appreciated as much as the image itself. Pictures frames accentuate printed or painted images. I wanted to construct a form using these old used frames to promote how a frame can hold some of the most meaningful images but is then sent to the trash or to the thrift stores once it is replaced or broken. The tree will be very geometric and will contain other items that are recycled on daily basis.

Darden Architects

Founded in Fresno in 1959, Darden Architects has been providing clients with specific expertise in design, planning, and construction related services relevant to education, health care and other public facilities. Throughout its 53 years of growth and development, Darden Architects has held strong to its foundational tenets: to provide exceptional design and the highest level of professional service to its clients. Every year we put together a team of enthusiastic creative individuals who have a blast designing and creating a Christmas Tree, as interpreted by the additional constraint that year. We have done a Christmas Truffula Tree from Dr. Seuss, a South Pole tree– upside-down, and “Doug Fir”– a tree skiing in the Mile-High city, Denver CO. We are excited for year’s theme, since in both professional practice and the glorious exhibition of art, we embrace Forever Green and consider the first most important element in “Green” is Forever.

Pat Carriveau

This is my second year decorating a tree at the airport to continue my tradition of decorating Christmas trees many years at the Met Museum. I taught for 25 years and am enjoying my retirement.

Name of Tree: Lighting the Way to a Greener Future.

Design Concept: I decided to decorate my tree using energy efficient light bulbs as a way to recycle spent bulbs. Fluorescent bulbs produce a far greater number of lumens per watt than incandescent bulbs. Changing out your bulbs at home is a small change you can make to lead a greener life.

KP & Friends

KP & Friends started with four girls working on wreaths and trees at the Metropolitan Museum. It is now Penny Sweazy, Karen McEwen and a silent partner. Karen is a children’s director at a hospital in Visalia, before her job at the hospital she worked at the Metropolitan Museum. Penny was a hairdresser for 12 years and has since switched to working at the Fresno State Foundation Office.

Name of Tree: Recycle, Reuse and Reduce your Twelve Days of Christmas!

Design Concept: The tree is going to be made of a variety of recycled materials. From old Christmas cards to circuit boards turned into ornaments. We wanted to take what was old and make it beautiful and apart of our tree!

Andrea Shabaglian

Andrea Shabaglian, native to Fresno, is a wife, mother of two and a woman with purpose. Andrea recently founded MadeForThem, a non-profit organization using design, fashion and the arts to raise awareness and financial resources to combat human trafficking – an issue that has become her life mission and passion.

Andrea has more than twelve years of experience in the hospitality and event management industries and has owned her own Event Management business, Events Divine since 2003. She has been successful in her field with both private and corporate clients. Through her career she has serviced almost every people group, but has always preferred charitable purposes behind all that she puts energy into.

Andrea is passionate and burdened for injustice. With a call from God on her life to do her part, Andrea is committed to having an active role in the fight against modern day slavery both locally in the Central Valley and worldwide. She is a nostalgic person and enjoys creative problem solving with other innovators and creatives. She’s not afraid to dream big!

Name of Tree: Going Green is Glamorous

Design Concept: Going Green IS Glamorous! Being socially responsible is an attractive character to both the individual and the corporation. Using recycled every day household items in combination with nature, this tree represents that being beautiful can be attainted by being resourceful, creative and socially responsible.

Cindy Ainsworth

I am a self employed artist, who attend art school in Las Vegas.

Name of Tree: Environmental Dragon

Design Concept : Inspired by my love for dragons and serendipity. The tree will use recycled materials to portray Chinese dragons (my favorite) spiraling around the tree.

Wendy Ainsworth

Wife,mother of four, craftaholic, ceramic enthusiast, and love to make something new from something old.

Name of Tree :Trash to Treasure

Design Concept :Examples of re-purposing household trash.

Name of Tree: NEVER NEVER in the LAND

Design Concept: What would Tink do with un-recyclable trash? Decorate a tree with it” recycling the un-recycleable.